Headache
by Tonks32
Summary: She wasn't going to panic. At least that's what Cora kept telling herself as she walked down the hall towards the Pathfinder's quarters. Scott was supposed to have met with the leaders of the Nexus and never showed. On top of that, no one had seen or heard from him since the night before. Cora was pretty sure she was overreacting. For all she knew, Scott pretty woman and spent the


She wasn't going to panic. At least that's what Cora kept telling herself as she walked down the hall towards the Pathfinder's quarters. Scott was supposed to have met with the leaders of the Nexus and never showed. On top of that, no one had seen or heard from him since the night before. Cora was pretty sure she was overreacting. For all she knew, Scott pretty woman and spent the night with her. That thought made her heart pang, something she didn't acknowledge. Well, Cora pretended to anyways.

Cora knocked on the metal door. "Ryder?"

Nothingness was her reply.

Cora took a calming breath and knocked again louder this time. "Ryder!"

Again, nothing.

"SAM," Cora called out when the third time yielded the same results.

"Yes, Lieutenant Harper?" The AI's voice came over the comms.

"Can you please unlock the door to the Pathfinder's room?" Cora asked and rattled off an authorization code. She found herself tapping her foot while she waited for SAM to unlock the door. The damn door was going to open and she would find the damn room empty making her feel like a lovesick fool for worrying so much about a man who was more than capable of taking care of himself. _Well, mostly._

"Opening now," SAM announced.

The door whooshed open and Cora went into full panic mode as she rushed inside. Scott was in fact in his room and currently lying face down on the ground tangled in his sheets, not a foot away from the bed. "Oh god." Calling on her Commando training to stay in control of her emotions, she dropped down beside the pathfinder and gently shook his bare shoulder. "Ryder? Scott? Damn it, Scott!"

He didn't respond.

Cora took solace in the fact the man was breathing. After checking his naked back for any obvious injuries, she rolled him over. His color looked good and there was a small bruise on the corner of his head from where he must have hit the floor. "Scott?" She gently patted his stubbly cheek. This time she got a soft hum. Still panicked, Cora called out for SAM, "Get Lexi down to Ryder's quarter's immediately."

"No." Scott croaked out, his fingers wrapping weakly around her wrist. "No Lexi."

"Scott-."

"M'okay," he softly assured giving her an almost dreamy smile. "No Lexi. Pathfinder's orders."

God help her, she laughed, helping the pressure in her chest ease ever so slightly. "The first time you pull the Pathfinder card is now?"

"Lieutenant Harper," SAM's voice rang out through the comms. "I have contacted Lexi and is on her way."

"Belay that order, SAM," Cora ordered against her better judgment. Scott was talking and becoming more alert by the moment. "Tell Lexi everything is fine."

"As you wish."

"Thank you." Scott sounded beyond relieved.

"Can you sit up?"

"I think so." Scott braced his hands against the cool tile floor, the muscles in his arms trembling in protest as he pushed up. The pounding in his head that took him down in the first place was returning and spots were dancing in front of his eyes again. "Could use some help."

Cora didn't hesitate. Taking him by the shoulders, she lifted him off the floor to lean him against the bed, not noticing that she in avertedly shifted the sheet wrapped around Scott's waist and discovered that the Pathfinder slept naked. "Umm, you might want…" Feeling her face start to burn, Cora wordlessly gestured. She was too human to ignore the urge to look for a half a second. But it was enough time to be impressed.

"What? OH!" Scott sluggishly wrapped the sheets tighter around his waist mumbling an apology. His smile grew through his eyes were glassy and still unfocused. "I can't tell if you're blushing. Are you? Please tell me you are, so my male ego gets a boost."

Now her entire face was inflamed and was doing her damndest to block out the fact that Scott looked damn good without his shirt. "Did you drink yourself into a stupor last night? Is that why you're like this."

He reached out for her and came up with nothing but air as he missed her arm by a few inches and nearly pitched face first onto the ground. "You're changing the subject. That must mean you're blushing. Come on, admit it. I won't stop until you tell me one way or another. Remember, I can ask SAM to tell if you're lying."

Cora rolled her eyes on a long sigh because she knew that Scott wouldn't let up until she answered him. She silently cursed SAM as she was stuck between a rock and a hard place with the entire situation. "Yes I am," Cora hastily admitted.

Scott blinked rapidly trying to clear his blurry vision. "Damn. I bet you're even prettier when you blush."

"Well, maybe later you can attempt to be charming and try to get me to blush," Cora softly joked growing more concerned by the moment by his condition. "What do you mean you can't see? How hard did you hit your head?"

"I can see. Everything is just a bit blurry." Blindly, Scott reached out and skimmed his fingers over Cora's lips and his brow wrinkled. "Why are you frowning?"

"Because I'm worried, that's why! I just came in here finding you face first on the floor. Do you even know how long you've been like this?"

"I don't remember. I woke up a blinding headache. One like I got when I first interfaced with SAM." Scott rubbed his temples. "I tried calling for SAM while getting out of bed then everything went black."

Cora carefully brushed his hair from the bruise on the corner of his forehead. Her heart caught in her throat when he turned his face and nuzzled into her palm. "Whatever happened wasn't normal. If your implant is messing up then I need to get you to Lexi."

Once again, Scott shook his head. "No. I think this is just complications from whatever the Archon did to be." He rubbed the back of his neck where the injection site was. Three days after the encountered and the thing still hurt like a bitch.

Thinking of the whole ordeal turned her blood to ice. She leaned him forward to see the site of injection angry red and swollen. "This could be infected. Have you ever been to seen by Lexi since we returned?"

"I did and I'm pretty sure you're scowling at me, but I promise I did. I don't want to see Lexi. She's still a bit sour over the whole SAM stopping my heart thing. Which, before you start in on me as well, was the only way to save you," Scott added knowing what was coming. "My vision is already clearing. I just need to get back in bed and maybe take a blocker or two."

"That's just a band-aid, Scott."

"Cora, please."

Sighing, Cora conceded, but that didn't mean she would be having a conversation with both SAM and Lexi. "Fine. Keep the sheet in place, okay."

"Soil sport." Keeping the sheet in place, Scott managed to get back onto the edge of the bed with the help of Cora. He tried to remain upright and act like the world wasn't spinning around him. He sighed the moment her hands touched his cheeks. "I'm okay."

"You don't look okay."

"I need to lay down."

Cupping the back of his head, Cora maneuvered the Pathfinder onto his back. "I'll be right back."

"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere."

"Cute."

"I try to be."

Closing his eyes, Scott heard the door open and close signaling Cora's exit. "SAM."

"Yes, Scott."

"What is going on?"

"I have been trying to diagnosis your current medical state since Lieutenant Harper alerted to me that you were in distress," SAM replied over their private channel. "But I believe your assumption that this is a side effect from your encounter with the Archon may be correct. Also, it may be a side effect of me having to stop your head. Your body may need to readjust. I will continue to monitor and run analyze."

"Thanks, SAM." Scott let out a heavy sigh. If he hadn't told SAM to completely log off then maybe they would have the information needed to figure out what the hell what was going on. This connection with SAM was still something he struggled to understand. Every time he switched profiles there was still a twinge of footage even after months of integration. Scott rubbed the bridge of his nose and cursed his father and his secrets.

Cora returned, placing a bottle of water on the bedside table with the blockers she had stored in her bunk for her own headaches. "Are you sure that I can't convince you to go see Lexi?"

"I'm fine."

"The blockers are on the table. I'll come back and check on you in an hour. If you're still like this I'm dragging your ass to Lexi if you like it or not."

"Wait, Cora." He reached out to catch her by the arm. "Will you sit with me? Blockers knock me out pretty quick so the torture won't be long."

"Spending time with you isn't torture, Scott."

A smile touched his lips. "It's okay, you can be honest with me. I know I can be a bit of a pain in the ass."

"You have your moments."

"Thank you, Cora."

"Don't thank me yet. I might be the reason Lexi sticks you with one of her big ass needles."


End file.
